Happy (?) Fall!

Fall Equinox happened this weekend and it has brought some cooler temperatures to Toronto (and likely elsewhere too!)

Orange maple leaf with a heart cut out of the middle.

While for some people this presents the opportunity to sport some new Fall fashion, change the furnace filters and consider turning up the heat, for others there are greater implications.

What else does colder weather bring?

Yesterday on my way downtown I saw my first homeless person with a sleeping bag for the season.

Last night as I reviewed my 6-year old’s clothing options for today I thought of the families in the apartment buildings near Parliament and Bloor in Toronto who have lost everything in the fire that raged through their homes in late August. Will their children be warm enough at school today?

And as I contemplate the need for a new jacket because the sleeves on the one in the closet are now too short for my child’s long arms, I contemplate what it would be like to need a jacket and not be able to buy one – new or second hand.

Today I’m thinking of how cooler and then colder weather for me means making soups and stews. And considering how much harder it is to be hungry when the weather is colder and your body needs extra energy to stay warm.

Upcoming holidays…

And with the cooler weather I’m also reminded that some major holidays are coming (see below for a partial list). While some of us look forward to holidays, people who have lost loved ones recently and individuals who have no family to share holidays with (because they are the last surviving family member, because they immigrated alone, or because they are not welcome at home…and for many other reasons) may find these days difficult, heartbreaking, and painful.

And more…

These are simple things. And, we know that life isn’t always simple. I’m sure there are many other reasons the changing leaves and cooler temperatures bring different emotions – reasons that I have forgotten, that I have never experienced, that I have no idea about.

My point, of course, is to consider that in the face of what you are experiencing and feeling, someone else may be having a completely different experience and emotion.

What can you do with that awareness to create connection and belonging for someone in your family, office, school, class, or community?

Happy (?) Fall!

See more.

Some upcoming holidays

Eid, Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur have come and gone already, but Canadian Thanksgiving is around the corner, the birth of Guru Granth (October 20th), Diwali (November 7, 2018), and then American Thanksgiving. After that it will be Hanukkah (December 2-10), Christmas (December 24 & 25 – unless you’re Orthodox), Kwanzaa (December 26-January 1) and Orthodox Christmas (January 7 & 8, 2019). And those are only the ones I know of!